“An iconic symbol of American independence”

The Liberty Bell's inscription conveys a message of liberty which goes beyond the words themselves. Since the bell was made, the words of the inscription have meant different things to different people. When William Penn created Pennsylvania's government he allowed citizens to take part in making laws and gave them the right to choose the religion they wanted. The colonists were proud of the freedom that Penn gave them. In 1751, the Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly ordered a new bell for the State House. He asked that a Bible verse to be placed on the bell - "Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the inhabitants thereof" (Leviticus 25:10). As the official bell of the Pennsylvania State House (today called Independence Hall) it rang many times for public announcements.

The old State House bell was first called the "Liberty Bell" by a group trying to outlaw slavery. These abolitionists remembered the words on the bell and, in the 1830s, adopted it as a symbol of their cause.

Beginning in the late 1800s, the Liberty Bell traveled around the country to expositions and fairs to help heal the divisions of the Civil War. It reminded Americans of their earlier days when they fought and worked together for independence.In 1915, the bell made its last trip and came home to Philadelphia, where it now silently reminds us of the power of liberty. For more than 200 years people from around the world have felt the bell's message. No one can see liberty, but people have used the Liberty Bell to represent this important idea.

Was recently here and to be honest even though the story of the bell is cool and it's free there really isn't much here. Independence Hall is much more interesting. I did enjoy the bell though and really can't complain because it's free. Also I snapped the picture you see in the banner on my last visit. The way the room is set up really allows for a great silhouette almost everytime so it's very nice for photographers.

We tried to go here but were sadly disappointed when it came to finding parking for our motorhome. We have been on a cross country trip trying to teach our kids all kinds of history by taking them to the actual sites and were quite disappointed to find out we could not park less than 2.4 miles from the bell.

The Liberty Bell is one on those things that you just have to see if you're in Philly. It's a great little piece of American history, but you'll probably enjoy the cheesesteak more. The good news is that it is free to see the bell, and even if the line goes out the building and most of the way to Independence Hall it won't take long to get in (there were probably 100 people in line ahead of us and it only took about 15 minutes to get in to see the bell). They have exhibits about the Liberty Bell and a few other bells, not a ton, and the bell itself is all the way at the end. Surrounded. By. People. You will probably have to wait a few minutes and squeeze past some people to get a photo with the bell.